It's not often that my whimsical prayers get answered, but just before Christmas last year, New York came to me. No perhaps not the 54,555 square miles of American soil that a deal with the devil would have given me, but rather, a city's inspiration in the shape of Nate and Pete Shy Child. And luckily when they were in London to shoot their new video, they kindly answered a few questions for us about their new album "Liquid Love" due out in March this Spring. So yes there may be some hearty competition from The Knife and Two Door Cinema Club but below are a few reasons why you should totally save your pennies for Shy Child- if not all of them. Yep just splash out, knowing full well you can sleep peacefully at night having three gratifying records in your music player. You know it makes sense. Although for now, here's the title track Shy Child are giving away as a little treat ahead of their album release.

Shy Child - Criss Cross [M]
Shy Child - Criss Cross [Y]

Pablo, Funkism: A warm welcome to London (even though it's freezing!)

Pete, Shy Child: Thanks!

Funkism: What's keeping you warm in this weather guys? My gran can knit you some ace jumpers.

Shy Child: We go inside. Our homes have heaters!

Funkism: So you've put taking over the world on hold?

Shy Child: Nope but I'll take a tropical island for myself though, I'm good with that.

Funkism: Look, I've got a machine here made from fairy dust and tin foil and it lets me read inside your minds (mwhaha)- but, for the readers, could you explain what keeps you grounded? Fuels your creativity? Makes you work?

Shy Child: The deeply rooted fear of being boring and unloved I think keeps me working. I take issue with the word creativity when used in this context. Commonly it's used by people who don't consider themselves "creative" as a way to describe or rationalize the differences between how they operate and how a "creative" person operates. There is nothing magical or preternatural or special about creative behaviour. It's assimilating and expressing the connections between emotion and experience. Lots of people are too lazy or unsure of themselves to do that in an interesting way, so they sequester away the "creative" personality as atypical, abnormal, anti-establishment, etc. This is why art is perceived as having a somewhat marginal role in modern society. In my opinion creativity is defined as using your brain.

Funkism: The machine is showing up a guilty pleasure, but it's all fuzzy, and I'm pretty sure there's a life rule that means you now have to tell us. What is it?

Shy Child: My daily life is kind of a guilty pleasure. I was raised catholic so anything at all that resembles bodily joy triggers a complex series of subconscious automatic responses, which emerges as unbridled obsession with sex. Which I then feel guilty about, refueling the responses and perpetuating the cycle. It's a self-birthing emotional mechanism ingrained in the fabric of American middle-class morality, from which basically everyone I know is trying to escape .

Funkism: So we’re hyped to hear your next album is due for release come March 2010- what themes can we expect on this record?

Shy Child: Expect forbidden love, missed chances, lost innocence, found innocence, hurt feelings, mended feelings, strange circumstances, unlikely lovers, unseen forces, failed intuition, hopeful pessimism, hateful compassion, harmonious dissonance!

Funkism: Like the irresistible juxtapositions in life?

Shy Child: Irresistible juxtapositions? Like a turkey sandwich two inches from my mouth? There's nothing irrational about that to me. It makes total sense!

Funkism: Is there anything in particular that you can’t wait for everybody to hear?

Shy Child: Well we have an instrumental rap funk-rock fusion album coming out on the heels of "Liquid Love" called 'Misguided Attempts'!

Funkism: Could you both sum up “Liquid Love” in a few words? Or are we at the risk of giving birth to another sub-genre?

Shy Child: "Liquid Love" is mostly a homage to the promise and power of instrumental rap funk-rock fusion. But ACTUAL FULL-ON instrumental rap funk-rock fusion is what we offer in "Misguided Attempts," available soon as a high-priority download of the week at HMV mp3 download kiosks only!

Funkism: So we're in the future and Mother Nature has kicked our ass by plunging the world underwater, but luckily we find Noah's Ark, which records would you both save first?

Shy Child: Pete says Neil Young's Harvest. Nate says Prince's Purple Rain. Pete's dad says The Best of Creedence Clearwater Revival Vol. 1 and 2. Nate's dad says The Best of The Rolling Stones Vol. 1 and 2 which I think is called 40 Licks or something like that. Those are the 4 people on Noah's Ark. Me, Nate, My dad Tom and Nate's dad Harry. I guess we should find out a way to reproduce somehow.

Funkism: Eeeew...how about animals?

Shy Child: Cats and dogs. I don't really like any other animals. Sorry. Who cares about bugs and stuff like that, seriously. Are insects animals?

Funkism: C'mon save the Platypus. It's cool!

Shy Child: No

Funkism: Thank you guys, enjoy your stay here in London!

So despite the whole Nate and Pete, their dad's and reproduction somehow ending up in the same sentence together, I still think you should all go check out their album when it's set for release in March. There's instrumental rap funk-rock fusion and honestly I can't wait!

Preview Tracks | Facebook | Twitter